Set Yourself on Fire
by The H-Experiment
Summary: It's hard being in love with your best friend and no one knows that better than Lucy. College!AU NaLu
**_Chapter 1_ : Take Me to the Riot a.k.a. You'll Have Me Back But It's Gonna Take a Week**

* * *

Lucy let out a heavy sigh as she dropped into the seat next to her blue haired friend, Levy. Her class had just ended and she had 45 minutes until her next class so naturally, she decided to spend it at the steps that her friends always hung out at when they had a break. She knew Levy had this same break and had eagerly hurried over to see her friend.

"Oh Lucy!" Levy gave her a bright smile in greeting, "Did you get out of class late?" The petite girl checked the time on her watch, "It's almost 12:15!"

"Yeah," Lucy said as she shrugged off her backpack and set it down beside her. "The professor just kept talking! I'm pretty sure the only reason he stopped was because everyone was already packed and glaring at him."

Levy let out a bright laugh and Lucy smiled in response. Levy was a friend that she had made at freshman orientation since groups were divided by majors and both of them were English majors, Lucy with a concentration in writing while Levy had a concentration in comparative literature. They had bonded over the recent release of a best-selling novel and since then, they had become inseparable. Now both juniors, Lucy and Levy shared an apartment together just a short walk from the campus of their school, University of Fiore, Fairy Tail, UFFT for short.

"I wonder where the others are? Don't they get out the same time as you?" Levy looked around the grassy quad, eyes in search of the other members of the little group.

"Ah, I think Natsu and Gray should be out. I know Natsu has class til 12:30 but he usually gets out early and I remember Gray hanging out here last week."

"Oh I see them!" At Levy's exclamation, Lucy looked over and sure enough, she saw two familiar heads of pink and black, bickering like always. "Geez, they're always arguing," Levy said with no small degree of fondness.

Lucy giggled but nodded in agreement. The two boys finally got to the steps and stopped arguing for the sake of saying hello. "Yo!" Gray waved at the two girls before sitting beside Levy.

Gray was another junior that was part of their little group. He and Natsu had been randomly paired together as roommates their freshman year while they both lived in the dorms and that experience had been…interesting to say the least. The two had gotten so many noise complaints that year that it made them infamous for being the loudest and most destructive dorm room to have ever existed. Many who lived in their hall reported nonstop yelling and arguing, scorch marks on walls, and random melted puddles of ice in the hallways, courtesy of a year-long prank war. Despite all of that, however, the two oddly enough agreed to live with each other the next year. And then the year after that.

Lucy suspected that despite everything that happened their freshman year, Natsu and Gray had gotten close in their own odd way. Nowadays, the two still argued but it was more for fun than anything. Natsu loved getting Gray all riled up and Gray loved insulting Natsu every chance he got.

"Lucyyy~" The other boy dropped down beside her, shoulder pressed up against as he sat closer than necessary. "Lucyy I'm hungry!"

She rolled her eyes and smiled, "Of course you are." The last member of their little group was Natsu Dragneel, her closest and oldest friend. They had met in primary school when Lucy was just ten years old. A group of boys had been teasing her for cutting her hair so short after getting gum in it when Natsu, the noble idiot that he was, ran up and punched the main boy in the face. He had gotten afterschool detention for a week and a parent-teacher conference but Lucy and Natsu became the best of friends.

A decade later and the two were still as close as ever. The two had gone through middle school and high school together and now, at the same university, Natsu was still the person she buy trusted the most and was closest to. Natsu was her dearest friend if there was anything she knew for sure, it was that they would always be friends, no matter what.

"Too bad, I don't have any food today!" Lucy huffed, crossing her arms underneath her bountiful chest. "I didn't bring lunch today because I was gonna eat at the student union."

Natsu pouted before throwing his head back and groaning, "Aah I'm so hungry."

"Idiot, you're always hungry," Gray snarked from the side. "It's amazing Lucy hasn't gone broke from all the times she's fed you."

"Hey it's better than always stripping!" Natsu shouted back.

"Wha-?" Gray glanced down to see his shirt missing, "Oh god dammit, shut up pinkie!"

"Now now boys, don't fight," Levy chimed in, "You wouldn't want Erza to find out right?"

Natsu and Gray stiffened, faces rapidly losing color, before they settled back into the seat, hands crossed primly on their lap. "A-aye…"

Erza Scarlet, a senior, was a close friend of theirs. Since she was a year older than them and had a boyfriend that took up most of her time, she wasn't as close as the group was to each other but still made it a point to check up them regularly and hang out with them once in a while. Erza had actually met Natsu and Gray before anyone else. She had lived on the same floor as the two when she was a sophomore and they were freshman and the two had accidently broke her door mid-fight. Natsu and Gray quickly learned that Erza Scarlet was not someone to upset.

Despite the rough start, she eventually warmed up to them and through them, met Lucy and Levy. They were all quite sad that she was graduating and leaving their little group. After all, who was gonna scare Natsu and Gray into submission now?

"Oi, did you guys hear?" Gray suddenly asked. The others looked at him curiously and he smirked. "Cana's throwing a party on Friday."

Ooooh. That was interesting. Cana, a senior, was another one of their friends and although she wasn't that close to their group, she always invited them to her parties because she liked them and in her words, 'Lucy's tits are so great it'd be a waste to not show them off at a party.' She threw the best parties since the apartment she lived in was big enough to fit a ton of people and her landlord didn't care enough to ever shut down the parties. Plus she never _ever_ ran out of alcohol. Cana's parties were practically infamous for being loud, wild, and raunchy and it was guaranteed that the party was not gonna disappoint. The first time Lucy had ever blacked out and made out with a stranger was at Cana's party but that was a story for another time.

Levy whistled, "This Friday?" She looked over to Lucy before asking, "Are you thinking of going?"

Before Lucy even had a chance to respond, Natsu slung a heavy arm over her shoulders and butted in, "Hell yeah she's going! Who else is gonna cheer me on while I outdrink numb nuts over here!"

"You can't outdrink anyone you friggin lightweight!"

The boys launched into another loud argument and Lucy could only sigh helplessly. She shrugged and smiled at Levy, "Well you heard him, I guess I'm going. Are you?"

Levy bit her lip in thought, "Ah maybe…I started this really good book and I wanted to finish it on Friday…"

"Are you sure?" Lucy edged in slyly, "Because if Cana's throwing it, there's a good chance Gajeel is going too…" She began nudging her blue haired friend and waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Wh-what does he have anything to do with me going!" Levy had turned a slight pink at Lucy's teasing.

Lucy scoffed and crossed her arms. "Oh don't play dumb, I know he walks you home after class _all the time_ and you can't tell me that the two coffees you buy in the morning are both for you." Lucy suddenly gasped before shoving her face into her friends, invading her personal bubble. "Are you guys really even _studying_ when you have those study sessions?"

" _Yes!_ " Levy screeched loud enough that Natsu and Gray stopped fighting to look over at her. "We're in the same class okay! H-he just needed some help on his writing that's all!" Although Levy was a Comparative Literature Major and Gajeel was a Computer Engineer, both of them had to take a writing class to satisfy their General Education requirement and they happened to be in the same one. Not used to so much writing, Levy had taken it upon herself to help the engineer out and so, the two would have frequent study sessions in which Levy helped Gajeel outline and proofread his papers.

Lucy threw her head back and laughed, "I'm just teasing! I know I know, you guys are just so cute together." She nudged her friend one last time, "But really though, he probably is gonna be there. You could always just stop by for a bit."

Levy huffed, her face still flushed with embarrassment, "Yeah I could…"she muttered. Lucy just laughed knowing that by the time Friday came, Levy would up and ready to go.

"Oh it's almost time for my next class," Gray checked the time on his phone and started to put on his backpack, "Gotta head out guys! My class is all the way on the other side of campus," he muttered.

"Oh shoot it's almost 1?" Lucy jumped up too, "I gotta go I have class on that side too!"

"Bye Lucy! Bye Gray!" Levy waved at them from her seat since she didn't have class for another half hour. "Natsu do you have class too?" she asked since the pink haired boy had stood up as well.

"Nah I'm gonna get some food," he yawned, ruffling the back of his head, messing up the salmon strands. "I'm so hungry! There's no way I'm gonna last until after my next class!"

Lucy laughed lightly and reached out to straighten his open button up that he had thrown on over a plain white tee. "Sorry Natsu, maybe next time I'll bring food."

"Alright," he gave her a bright grin, "Looking forward to it!"

She giggled happily until Gray tugged on her of her backpack straps. "Oi don't you have class to get to?"

Lucy brushed his hand off before hopping down the few steps to the ground. "Oh we'll be fine," she said before she spun around, waving at her friends. "Bye you guys!"

Levy smiled at them while Natsu waved energetically, "Bye assface!" Gray scowled. "Bye Lucy! I'll see you tonight!"

"Bye see you!" Lucy and Gray quickly ran off in the direction of their class buildings and it wasn't until she almost reached hers that she paused.

"Wait, what's tonight?"

 **~0~**

"Hi Lucy!"

"Ahhhh Natsu?!"

Lucy screeched from her position on the couch in front of the TV as her door was flung open by a certain pink haired boy who casually walked through the door like it was nothing. He had with him a 6 pack of soda that he immediately dropped onto her kitchen counter. "Natsu what are you doing here?"

"Eh?" He looked at her confused, "What are you talking about? Didn't I say I'd see you tonight?" he asked as he made a beeline for her fridge.

"W-well yeah but I didn't know that meant you were coming over?"

"I don't know why you still bother acting so surprised," he said as he pulled out a slice of cake she had been saving, "I've done this so many times."

"That's not a good thing an- hey put that down that's my cake!" She pointed an angry finger at him and gave him a glare that would've made Erza proud. "That is _my_ cake that _I_ was saving for _myself,"_ she gritted out.

Natsu gulped and slowly put the cake back into the fridge.

Lucy sighed and flopped back onto the couch, giving up on staying mad. What he said was true, he was always barging into her apartment, eating her food, acting like it was his apartment even though he _did_ have a perfectly nice one that he shared with Gray. He always insisted on coming over, saying something like ' _Oh but your apartment is so much niiicerrr!'_ Sometimes she would even come home to find him asleep on her bed. How he ever got into her apartment? She'd never know.

"So what are we watching tonight?" Natsu hopped over the back of the couch and bounced slightly when he fell into the seat cushion next to her. He immediately kicked his socked feet up onto the coffee table and sunk into the couch with a happy sigh.

"What makes you think we're watching anything?" Lucy quirked an eyebrow up at him.

"Aw come oonnn Lucy, we always watch shows on Wednesday nights!" Natsu pouted at her, his big green eyes sparkling under the light. "You don't have class til 1 tomorrow and I _know_ you already finished your assignments."

Lucy only sighed and halfheartedly rolled her eyes at him before her features melted into a smile. "I started rewatching Friends and I'm halfway through season 2."

"Friends? Haven't you seen that like, bazillion times?" Natsu stared questioningly at the TV which was playing an episode. "I'm pretty sure you were watching this when we were in high school. Actually, I'm _really_ sure because there was that week where you binge watched it and didn't sleep at all." He squinted at her, "You almost got in a fight with some girl because you were so moody and sleep deprived."

She laughed nervously, "Eh heh well yeah, I did watch it back then but it's a classic! I love this show and it's been like, 4 years okay."

Natsu shrugged, making himself comfortable on the couch. He threw his arm over the top of the couch and crossed his feet. "Well alright then, Friends it is. Better be good if you're watching it again."

"Oh it is," Lucy grinned at him before she snuggled into his side. His arm slipped down onto her shoulders and she pressed herself against him happily.

If she were to speak honestly, it was these quiet moments in between the hustle and bustle of college life that she lived for. The very few moments every week that she could just sit on her couch, turn on the tv and relax with her best friend without worrying about assignments, midterms, or essays. This was her and Natsu's time to just unwind and enjoy each other's company.

Maybe it was a little weird for best friends to cuddle up on the couch and watch shows like this but for them it wasn't. Natsu had always been an affectionate person, especially to her, and Lucy honestly craved affection. It was kinda expected since her mother passed away when she was young and her father never showed his love. But she had Natsu as her closest friend so things worked out. It didn't matter that it made their friends suspicious or that guys were hesitant to talk to her because they always thought she and Natsu were a thing, as long as she had him by her side then it was fine.

Whenever it did come up in conversation, however, Lucy always knew what to say. No they're not dating, they're just really good friends. No they had never dated before. No they were never going to date, they were just friends and that was it. Their relationship just wasn't like that.

Natsu was just the friend that she went to when she was sad. He was the friend that she went to when she wanted to celebrate. He was the one that would support her in any decision she made and cheer her on in whatever she wanted to pursue. He was her oldest and most dearest friend and the friend that understood her better than she understood herself sometimes. He was her best friend and that was it.

Still, sometimes, she couldn't help but wish for more.

After all, she was sorta maybe kinda head over heels in love with him.

Yeah.

She was in love with her best friend.

It wasn't like she woke up one day madly in love with her pink haired best friend. No, it had taken quite some time for her to realize. She wasn't quite sure when it started, maybe sometime during their first year of college, but when it did, it was a slow, slow burn. Somewhere along the way of their friendship, Natsu stopped being that goofy platonic guy friend of her and started being….something else. Maybe it was when she noticed how tall and broad in the shoulders he had gotten. Or maybe it was when she noticed how handsome he looked when he smiled at her, especially when his eyes sparkled like so. Or maybe, just maybe, it was when she noticed how good it felt to have his arms wrapped around her. To just sink into his warmth and let herself melt into his embrace. To feel the butterflies erupt in her stomach. She really wasn't sure when it started but when it did, there was really no way to stop. It wasn't long before she had to face the truth before it tore her apart: she was in love with Natsu and he could never ever find out.

It's not like she could actually ever tell him. He just…didn't feel that way about her. If she _did_ tell him, well, wouldn't that just ruin everything? Their friendship was just so valuable to her and there was no way she would risk that for a silly crush. Okay, maybe not a silly crush but still, he didn't have the same feelings and it would just be so awkward. There was no way their friendship would continue on like normal if she confessed. No, this was better. This was fine. Sure she loved him but he was her best friend first and foremost and that was all that mattered. As long he was in her life, she was fine. Maybe one day her feelings would fade but for now, he was happy and she was happy.

"Hey Luce?" She was quickly pulled out of her thoughts by gentle nudge. She turned her head to look into dark green eyes that seemed to shift in the light.

"Hm?"

"Can we order pizza?" Natsu grinned sheepishly at her and as if on cue, his stomach gave a little growl.

Lucy giggled in response before nodding. This was her best friend, still the same goofy, kind hearted boy that he had always been although maybe a little bit more handsome. This was Natsu.

"Sure."

 **~0~**

"Oh oh we're here!" Levy pointed at a tall impressive looking apartment complex. She bounced up to the front door and looked back at Lucy. "Do you know the gate code?"

Lucy wracked her brain before snapping her fingers, "Oh I think I still have it in my texts somewhere! Hold let me check." She quickly pulled out her phone and skimmed through her texts with Cana. She ignored the steady stream of texts that she was getting from Natsu asking where she was, was she here, what was she wearing, etc. Really, she loved the guy but he could be too much sometimes. "Oh found it! It's the star button and then 1346."

"Oh it worked!" Levy cheered and with that, the two girls slipped into the building. It was Friday night, around 11 pm and they had just arrived at the Cana's. Natsu and Gray were already there since the party had 'started' at ten but everyone knew it wouldn't get to full swing til at least 11 and he had been texting Lucy nonstop, nagging her to just get to the party already. Lucy pulled out her phone as they waited in the elevator to shoot him a text saying that she just got into the apartment.

' _Finally! Just knock on the door Cana's right there!'_

Lucy rolled her eyes fondly and Levy looked at her curiously. "Is that Natsu?"

"Yeah," she said as they stepped out. The night air was pretty brisk and she and Levy had huddled together on the walk over since their outfits, cute tops and jean shorts, did nothing to protect them from the cold air. "He's already there and said we can just knock."

The moment the door opened into the party, Lucy was hit by a wave of warm humid air. The party was loud, that she could hear from outside the door, but now that she was inside, she could hardly believe that Cana got away with this every time. There were already a good amount of people inside, some gathered around the beer pong table by the window, some drinking in a corner, and others just having conversations against the wall. For a college student, Cana's apartment was pretty big. The average apartment only really had a living room and kitchen but hers had an extra dining room attached that was out of sight from her position by the door. Lucy peered around the living, looking for a familiar pink head but before she could find him, an arm wrapped around her neck and dragged her into a busty chest.

"Lusshiiii! Levyyy!" Cana had grabbed the two girls and pulled them in for an exuberant hug. "You guys caamee!" she slurred happily.

"Of course!" Came a slightly muffled reply. Lucy glanced to the side to see that Levy's face was slightly squished into Cana's generous chest.

"Yeah we didn't wanna miss it!" Lucy added, discreetly trying to help her blue haired friend pull away.

"Oh oh _oh_! Did you guys drink yet?" Cana looked around the apartment frantically until she spotted someone holding a bottle of alcohol. "There! Go! Drink!" she screeched, ushering them in that general direction.

Lucy and Levy giggled, letting the drunk senior push them before she quickly got distracted by something else and ran away. Lucy looked around the apartment and took in the familiar furniture and beige walls. Cana lived in this same apartment for the past two years and had been here when Lucy first started college and was introduced to the rambunctious woman. This apartment brought back a lot of memories, fond and not so font. There was that time that Gray got so drunk he ran away from the party and they later found him naked sleeping in the sculpture garden on campus. There was also that time Natsu got a hold of the phone and ordered 50 pizzas to the apartment and then tried to tip the delivery guy with a half empty bottle of tequila and it _worked_. There was also that time Lucy blacked out for the first time and ended up making out with a random guy on the couch in the corner.

That had been an interesting night.

Before that night, winter quarter of her first year, she had drank before, just never that much. She had gotten drunk before, thrown up before, and had even ended up with terrible hangovers but never had she ever completely blacked out like that. It was sometime after her tenth shot that things had started getting hazy and before she had known it, the night passed by in a blur and she had woken up in her bed with the worst hangover in the world. It was up to Erza and Levy to tell her, the next day, that she had indeed made out with a random guy on the couch. After they told her, Lucy started to remember bits and pieces of the night. She remembered spilling her chase on someone tall and handsome, she remembered dark blue eyes and a warm hand around her waist, and she remembered thinking ' _Huh, he's cute and I'm drunk so why not?'_

Honestly, it wasn't really a big deal. Making out with strangers at parties wasn't really anything huge in college, it was actually pretty normal. It was just the first time Lucy had ever done it, to all of her friend's surprise. Their reactions were expected though. Gray had nodded and told her ' _Nice,'_ Levy had squealed in shock when it happened and hadn't know where to cheer her on or stop her, Erza took one look and started blushing wildly and Natsu….well actually, Lucy couldn't remember what Natsu's reaction was but that didn't matter.

But basically, that was her first experience blacking out and making out with a stranger.

And it happened here, at Cana's apartment.

"Lucy!" She was pulled from her thoughts by someone calling her name and when she found spun around, she saw her best friend bounding over to where she was with a huge sloppy grin on his face. "Lucy! What're you doing just standing here? I was looking for you!"

"Natsu! Sorry I was just sorta lost in my thoughts." She quickly zeroed in on the slight sway of his steps and flush that was slowly but surely making its way onto his face. "Are you already drunk?"

"Nooo no no no I'm not drunk." Natsu wrapped an arm around her shoulders and for the second time that night, Lucy was dragged against another body. This close to him, she could smell the alcohol on his breath and she daintily wrinkled her nose at him. Natsu caught her expression and gave a sheepish chuckle. "Eh, okay, maybe I'm a little drunk."

Lucy rolled her eyes in disbelief. "I can't believe it! Didn't the party start like an hour ago? How much have you had?"

Natsu blinked up at the ceiling with a hand rubbing his chin, "Ah…I had like 3 when I got here…and then that fucker Gray…6? Shoot no…" He turned his gaze to her, "I think maybe 8? I'm not too sure though. Hey hey this actually wasn't all me!" He hurriedly tried to explain when Lucy's face melted into a shocked one. "It was Gray! He challenged me to do three in a row and you know I can't say no to a challenge!"

Lucy sighed, trying to keep a straight face but the corners of her lips quirked up when the pink haired man pouted and whimpered at him. "Okay okay stop making that stupid face," she said, "Now get me something to drink! I'm too sober for this."

"Aye aye captain!" Natsu shouted with a grin before leading her off to where he knew Gray was, hoarding all the good alcohol, that bastard. He paused and looked down at her, taking in her top and shorts. The outfit was simple and along the lines of what she normally wore but it was still very cute on her. The top was flowy white spaghetti strap with blue embroidery at the top that highlighted the subtle tan of her skin, making her glow, and her ripped jean shorts showed off her impossibly long, slender legs. The shirt ended a little before the button of her shorts, showing a small sliver of smooth creamy skin. "Bye the way Luce, you look nice," he said, eyes warm and voice oddly husky.

Lucy shivered as his deep voice skittered along her spine and futilely tried to keep a blush off her face. Natsu had always complimented her but for some reason, this time felt different. She looked him up and down as well. He was wearing a short sleeve dark green button up with a lighter green pocket along with a pair of black jeans. Lucy could have sighed in envy. While she had taken a solid hour to figure out what to wear, she knew that Natsu probably threw on the first thing he saw in his closet and he still looked damn good. She couldn't help but notice what the shirt did for his toned biceps. "Thanks Natsu, you look nice too."

"Thanks Luce," he said and Lucy could feel her stomach flutter at the fond look on his face. "Cmon let's go!" And with that, she followed Natsu into the kitchen.

 **~ 0 ~**

It was around 1 am when the excitement of the party wore off and Lucy started feeling the weight of the long day press down on her. She was tired, slightly drunk, and for some odd reason, her lower back really _really_ hurt. Man, she was getting old. Before, as a freshman, she could stay out til 4 am and still somehow make it to class at 8 and now here she was, two hours into the party and she already wanted to go home. She fought back a yawn and nodded politely to the guy that she had been talking to. He was tall, average-looking, with messy brown and he was seemed pretty nice, but she just wasn't interested. It wasn't anything against him, she just really had no interest in guys or dating in general.

A little voice in the back of her head whispered, ' _That's because none of the guys are Natsu'_ but she ignored it.

"So, hey, do you wanna maybe get out of here?" The guy was now a lot closer to her than she remembered and she could feel his warm breath brush against her face. She leaned back uncomfortably.

"Um, ah, actually I was planning on going home with my roommate," she smiled a bit apologetically, "Sorry…" she trailed off, slowly edging away.

"Oh, really? Come on, I can walk you home this time." He leered down at her with a drunken grin, eyeing the dip of her shirt and her exposed cleavage.

"N-No that's okay!" Lucy stammered. She pretended to see someone across the room and jumped away from his wandering hand. "Oh there she is now! Gotta go, bye!"

Lucy scurried away from the guy and made her way across the room, jumping behind a crowd to escape his view. "Excuse me!" She dodged a tipsy girl holding a full cup of who knows what and a couple making out against a wall and managed to end up in the kitchen. She looked around for a quick second and until a flash of pink hair appeared in her peripherals and she spun in happiness.

"Natsu! There you…are…oh…"

Lucy could feel her heart drop.

Natsu was in the kitchen alright but he wasn't alone. He was leaning against the wall talking to a pretty dark haired girl that Lucy didn't know and although there were other people in the kitchen, drinking and having fun, it didn't seem to bother the couple at all since they seemed so absorbed in each other. Lucy's eyes couldn't help but zero in on the hand that was on the girl's waist and although she tried, she couldn't look away. The two were in the same position that she and that guy had been in earlier but instead of leaning away like Lucy had, the nameless girl seemed to relish the proximity. Lucy watched as the girl place a flirty hand on his chest. Her stomach clenched as the hand slid up around his neck and the girl laughed prettily at something Natsu said.

She wasn't jealous.

No, really, she was fine.

It was obvious that she was flirting with him and from what Lucy could see, Natsu had no complaints about that. In fact, it looked like he enjoyed it more than anything. And why wouldn't he? She was an attractive, interested girl and it's not like he was tied down or anything. He was single and he could do whatever he wanted. Lucy wasn't his keeper, she definitely wasn't his girlfriend, so she was in no place to dictate his actions. She was merely his best friend and that meant he could do whatever he wanted and she wouldn't care.

But still, she couldn't help but look away when their faces got closer to one another.

The fingers of her hand curled into her palm and Lucy bit her lip as she looked to the side, unwilling to see what she knew was her best friend making out with some random girl. The pit that had settled in her stomach seemed to widen and she blinked rapidly to stop her eyes from welling up in tears.

"Oh Lucy!" The girl in question looked up at the sound of her name and saw Natsu who had apparently caught sight of his best friend and started walking towards her with his arm around the girl's waist. She inwardly panicked and hoped that her eyes weren't too red or watery. "I didn't even see you here! Are you going home soon?"

Lucy avoided looking directly at him and just nodded in reply. "A-ah, yeah, I'm pretty tired already."

"Oi, you're not gonna walk home alone are you?" Natsu gave her a worried look.

"Oh no, I was gonna find Levy!" Lucy smiled weakly at him, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

Natsu looked unconvinced but he nodded anyways, "Well as long as you're not alone. It's late after all. I'd walk you back but…" he winked at Lucy before pulling the girl closer to him.

Lucy forced a smile on her face and laughed as convincingly as she could. "Oh yeah I figured, it's fine! Have fun!"

"Thanks Luce!" He and the girl made their way out of the kitchen but not before he turned one last time to shout back at her. "Hey text me to let me know you got home safe!"

"Okay!" Lucy waved at him before letting her arm drop.

As Natsu and that girl walked away, Lucy just stood there and watched. She knew what was gonna happen next. It's happened a million times before. She was probably gonna go over to his place, they were probably gonna sleep together, and Lucy, like always, would just go home and lay in bed with the image of the two burned underneath her eyelids. This wasn't the first time and it definitely wasn't the last but it still sucked watching the man she loved go home with another girl. It didn't matter that Lucy loved him and it didn't matter that her heart broke a little every time this happened because she had friendzoned herself and therefore, had no fucking right to feel this way.

"Hey Lucy," Levy had suddenly appeared by her side, wearing a concerned look on her face. "Are you alright?"

Was she alright? No. No of course not. But did she really have a choice? No, not really. She had to be alright because to Natsu, she was just the best friend and best friends didn't declare their love for each other, they didn't bring romantic feelings in to fuck up friendships and the most certainly did not get upset over stupid pretty dark haired girls. No matter what she told herself though, there was still this terrible mixture of anger and jealousy clawing at her stomach and Lucy wanted nothing more than to just curl up on the ground and cry and just forget about handsome best friends who slept around with girls he didn't even know. Was she alright?

Lucy nodded, "Yeah I'm fine."

It hurt.

* * *

 _so this is my first Fairy Tail fic and i'm sorry i kinda made Natsu a manwhore but things get better i promise. i didn't think i'd start writing for this fandom but gosh, this ship is just so cute and i was inspired by all the good fics out there. plus this idea popped into my head and i just had to write it. also, this may or may not be inspired by my own college experience. this chapter took a while to write but i hope to get the next one out within this month!_

 _please review!_


End file.
